Chris Bosh
Christopher Wesson "Chris" Bosh (born March 24, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Miami Heat of the NBA (National Basketball Association). A high school "Mr. Basketball" in Texas, Bosh left college at Georgia Tech after one season with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets men's basketball team to enter the 2003 NBA Draft. He was selected fourth overall by the Toronto Raptors in a very competitive draft class. While at Toronto, Bosh emerged as one of the young stars in the league; he became a five-time NBA All-Star, was named to the All-NBA second team once, appeared for the US national team (with whom he won a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics), and took over former fan-favorite Vince Carter as the face and leader of the Raptors franchise. In the 2006–07 season, Bosh led the Raptors to their first NBA Playoffs berth in five years, and their first ever division title. He left Toronto in 2010 as its all-time leader in points, rebounds, blocks, double doubles, free throws made and attempted, and minutes played. Bosh won his first NBA title after Miami defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 4–1 in the 2012 NBA Finals. He won his second title in 2013 as the Heat defeated the San Antonio Spurs in the 2013 NBA Finals. Bosh was nicknamed "CB4" by Toronto Raptors play-by-play commentator Chuck Swirsky, a combination of Bosh's initials and then jersey number. Seeking to promote sports and education amongst youths in Dallas and Toronto, Bosh set up the Chris Bosh Foundation and regularly speaks to youths about the benefits of reading. Early life Born in Dallas, Texas, to Noel and Freida Bosh, Chris Bosh grew up in Hutchins, Texas. A family-oriented person, Bosh often played basketball in the house with his younger brother, Joel. By four years of age, he began learning how to dribble a basketball in the gym where his dad played pick-up games. Although Bosh was always tall since youth and this allowed him to out-rebound others in basketball games, he only started learning the game around fourth grade at a playground near his grandmother's house. Apart from basketball, Bosh also played baseball up until high school, preferring to play as first baseman. Growing up, Bosh names his parents as the biggest influences on his personality and considered NBA superstar Kevin Garnett as his favorite athlete, modeling his play after him. Academically, Bosh always did well in schoo but he began to garner significant attention from college recruiters when he led Lincoln High School in Dallas to the number one ranking in the country and the USA Today National Championship with a perfect 40–0 season. The teenager went on to lead Lincoln High to win the Class 4A state title before 16,990 fans as he racked up 23 points, 17 rebounds and nine blocks. Bosh was subsequently named High School Player of the Year by Basketball America, Powerade Player of the Year in Texas, a First-team all-American by Parade, McDonald's and EA Sports, a Second-team all-American by USA Today and SLAM Magazine, a First-team all-state player, and "Mr. Basketball" in Texas by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches. With his combination of grades and basketball skills, Bosh was on a number of college recruiting lists. The University of Florida and the University of Memphis made serious attempts, but it was Paul Hewitt, coach of the Georgia Tech, who made the best impression. Bosh felt Hewitt would look out for his best interests and respect his aspirations to play professional basketball; moreover, Georgia Tech's transition offense impressed the teenager. Bosh eventually chose to follow the footsteps of his cousin and aunt and attended Georgia Tech to study graphic design and computer imaging, and subsequently, management. There, he led the Yellow Jackets in averaging 15.6 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocks in 31 games, and led the Atlantic Coast Conference in field goal percentage (.560), joining Antawn Jamison as the only freshmen ever to do so. Bosh originally intended to complete his degree, but by the end of the 2002–03 season, his strong performances convinced him that he was ready for the NBA. He left Georgia Tech after his freshman season and entered the 2003 NBA Draft. Although Bosh said in future interviews that he misses his college days, he believes he made the right decision to pursue a professional career.He also intends to obtain a college degree in the future, to fulfill a promise made to his mother. NBA career Toronto Raptors Rookie year (2003–04) In a strong draft class including future All-Stars LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwyane Wade, Bosh was selected fourth overall by the Toronto Raptors in the 2003 NBA Draft and was signed on July 8, 2003. Prior to his signing, however, other NBA teams made offers for Bosh as they knew Toronto needed a veteran scorer, and Raptors star Vince Carter himself pressed for a trade. General Manager Glen Grunwald turned everyone down. In his rookie season Bosh was forced to play out of position as the Raptors' starting center after Antonio Davis was traded to the Chicago Bulls.] Night in and night out the wiry teenager battled against opponents who had a significant size and strength advantage over him. Bosh—who cited teammate Michael Curry as his mentor—was often praised by his coaches for his heart, and willingness to play through pain and injuries resulting from his lack of body strength compared to some of the league's strong forwards and centers. Bosh's contributions were not unnoticed by teammates either, as he averaged 11.5 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, and 33.5 minutes in 75 games, leading all rookies in rebounding and blocks, and setting a franchise record for most rebounds in a rookie season with 557. Bosh was rewarded by being selected to the All-Rookie First Team for the 2003–04 season. Overhauling the roster (2009–10) To prepare for the 2009–10 season, Bosh worked out under Ken Roberson, looking to add 20 pounds and bring his weight up to 250. Following the failure of the 2008–09 campaign, Colangelo knew that he had to shake up the roster to persuade Bosh to stay, and the Raptors were one of the busiest teams in the pre-season market.[ Toronto's lack of wing players was addressed by the drafting of DeMar DeRozan. They then managed to get Hedo Türkoğlu to renege on a verbal commitment to sign with the Portland Trail Blazers and obtained him in a sign-and-trade with the Orlando Magic. They also traded for Antoine Wright and Marco Belinelli, while Bosh's former Georgia Tech teammate and then-Indiana point guard Jarrett Jack was also signed as a free agent. Reggie Evans, Amir Johnson, Sonny Weems and former Raptors Rasho Nesterovič and Pops Mensah-Bonsu were acquired in separate transactions to add front court depth. They opened their season with a win against the heavily favored Cleveland Cavaliers, in which Bosh scored 21 points and pulled down 16 rebounds. Bosh went on a tear, averaging 25.4 points and 11.9 rebounds in the first 16 games, but the Raptors were only able to win seven of those games. In that period, Bosh was also the league leader in rebounds, rebounds per game, free throws made and attempted, and double doubles. The Raptors crossed into 2010 with a 16–17 record, and on January 3, 2010, Bosh overtook Vince Carter as Toronto's all-time leader in total points scored.After pulling together a string of wins, Toronto were .500 after 40 games, and Bosh remained the league leader in double doubles, being only one of two players in the league who averaged at least 20 points and 10 rebounds a game. On January 20, 2010, he scored a career-high 44 points in a loss against the Milwaukee Bucks, while collecting his 220th career double double. That same month, Bosh was named a reserve for the Eastern Conference All-Star team, and was Eastern Conference Player of the Week. After the All-Star break, the Raptors went on several losing streaks and injuries to Bosh and Türkoğlu exacerbated the situation. As the regular season came to a close, the Raptors went from being the fifth seed before the All-Star break to fighting for the eighth and final playoff spot with the Chicago Bulls. After recording his 44th double double on March 22, 2010, Bosh became the Raptors' all-time leader in number of double doubles in a season. On April 5, 2010, he was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week, winning the honor for the seventh time in his career (tying Carter for the most in franchise history). However, Bosh was unable to play in a pivotal match against the Bulls on April 11, 2010. The blowout loss cost Toronto their tie-breaker and ultimately the eighth seed, as the Bulls finished with 41 wins to Toronto's 40 Miami Heat (2010–present) After the 2009–10 season was over, there was much speculation over whether coveted free agents such as LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Bosh would sign with new teams for the 2010–11 season. Bosh was active on the social media front, posting his thoughts on Twitter and having a documentary crew record his meetings with the teams interested in signing him. On July 10, 2010, Bosh officially completed a sign-and-trade deal with the Miami Heat, teaming up with Wade and James. The Raptors received two first-round draft picks in the sign-and-trade, using one to draft Jonas Valančiūnas and trading another to the Chicago Bulls for James Johnson; the Bulls used that pick to draft Norris Cole. Bosh's parting message to the Raptors on his website said, "Know that this was my toughest decision, mostly because Toronto has been so great to me. I've loved every minute here and I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart to the Raptors..." Not only did Bosh leave Toronto as its all-time leader in virtually all major statistical categories, he was one of only three players in the league who accrued 10,000 points, 4,500 rebounds, and 600 blocks in his seven seasons with the Raptors. Despite being widely tipped as contenders, the Heat got off to a tentative 9–8 start, and Bosh was perceived to be under-performing. The Heat managed to go on to compile a 21–1 record, however, and were jostling with the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls for pole position in the Eastern Conference as mid-season approached. Miami finished the regular season with 58 wins and faced Philadelphia in the first round of the playoffs. Miami won the series in five games, and also prevailed in five games in the semi-finals against Boston. In the Conference Finals against Chicago, Bosh was particularly instrumental, averaging 23.2 points in the 4–1 series win. He was slow off the blocks in the Finals against Dallas, shooting below .300 in the first two games, but scored the winning shot in Game 3 to give Miami a 2–1 lead. That was the last game Miami won, as Dallas won the next three to win its first ever championship. On January 5, 2012, Bosh, who was playing and filling in for an injured James and Wade, led the Heat to a 116–109 triple overtime win against the Atlanta Hawks, avenging their only loss of the season to that point, and improving the team's record to 7–1. The game was highlighted by a three-point shot Bosh made to force the game into overtime with 0.06 seconds left to play in the fourth quarter. Bosh finished the game with 33 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocked shots. On February 15, 2013, Bosh was picked as an All-Star starter over the injured Rajon Rondo by coach Erik Spoelstra. At the end of game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs, Bosh grabbed a huge offensive rebound and blocked Danny Green's last shot to secure a win. The Heat defeated the Spurs in 7 games Category:Roster